Health News Roundup: Teen depression risk lower in close-knit families; Rising heart infections tied to U.S. opioid epidemic

Following is a summary of current health news briefs.

Democrat lawmaker introduces bill to cap nicotine content in vapes

A U.S. lawmaker on Monday introduced a bill that seeks to regulate e-cigarette makers by capping the amount of nicotine in the vapes they manufacture to make them less addictive. The bill, introduced by Illinois Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, is the latest effort by lawmakers to clamp down on e-cigarette use, given a spike in underage vaping.

Nobel Medicine Prize won by doctors for work on cells' response to oxygen

Two Americans and a Briton won the 2019 Nobel Medicine Prize on Monday for discovering a molecular switch that regulates how cells adapt to fluctuating oxygen levels, opening up new approaches to treating heart failure, anaemia and cancer. William Kaelin at the U.S. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Harvard Medical School said he was overwhelmed to get a pre-dawn call to say he and two other doctors, Gregg Semenza of Johns Hopkins University and Peter Ratcliffe of Oxford University, had won the 9-million Swedish-crown ($913,000) prize.

U.S. recorded seven new cases of measles last week

The United States recorded 7 new measles cases last week taking the total cases for the year to 1,250 in the worst outbreak since 1992, federal health officials said on Monday. As of Oct. 3, the highly contagious and sometimes deadly disease has been reported in 31 states, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Paralyzed man hails 'feat' of walking again with robot exoskeleton

The French tetraplegic man who has been able to walk again using a pioneering four-limb robotic system, or exoskeleton, said walking was a major feat for him after being immobile for years. The French scientists behind the system, which was publicly unveiled last week, use a system of sensors implanted near the brain which send signals to the robotic system, moving the patient's legs and arms.

Bayer says Oct. U.S. glyphosate trial delayed until further notice

A pending U.S. lawsuit over claims related to Bayer's glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup has been delayed, the company said on Sunday, with a court status conference in February, 2020. "The Oct. 15, 2019 trial date for Winston v. Monsanto in St. Louis City has been postponed," Bayer said in a statement.

More U.S. heart disease patients may be choosing to die at home

Fewer U.S. patients with cardiovascular disease are dying in hospitals and more of them are dying at home, a new analysis suggests. Between 2003 and 2017, among the more than 12 million Americans who died of cardiovascular disease, the proportion dying at home rose from 23% to 31%, researchers report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.

Rising heart infections tied to U.S. opioid epidemic

(Reuters Health) - As the opioid epidemic continues in the U.S., more cases of an infection that damages the heart are being seen, researchers say. Between 2002 and 2016, rates of infective endocarditis doubled, with much of the increase occurring in young, poor, white men who also tended to have higher rates of alcohol abuse, hepatitis C and HIV, the study authors report in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Youth suicide attempts often involve over-the-counter painkillers

(Reuters Health) - Young people who attempt suicide by poisoning often use antidepressants or over-the-counter medicines like acetaminophen, ibuprofen and aspirin, a U.S. study suggests. For the study, researchers examined U.S. Poison Center data from 2000-2018 on 1.68 million suspected cases of suicide by self-poisoning among people ages 10 to 25. Overall, one in four cases resulted in serious or potentially life-threatening medical issues.

Teen depression risk lower in close-knit families

Teens with positive family relationships may be less likely to develop depression during adolescence or early adulthood, a new study suggests. Researchers followed 18,185 volunteers starting when they were age 15 on average and continuing until ages 32 to 43. In a series of surveys, researchers asked them about family dynamics and depression symptoms.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)